Past Initiatives
Community efforts that planted lasting seeds
Better Together has a proud history of launching and supporting initiatives that took root and continued to grow in the community.
Futures in Focus / Gateway to your Future
Better Together Nacogdoches helped launch and grow Futures in Focus (formerly known as Gateway to your Future), a hands-on career exploration event designed to connect students with real pathways into high-demand careers in East Texas. The initiative aligned with broader community goals around education, workforce development, and opportunity for young people.


Over multiple years, the event brought together schools, employers, higher education partners, and workforce leaders to give students the chance to explore careers through hands-on experiences—ranging from healthcare and skilled trades to technology and automotive fields. These interactive opportunities allowed students to “test drive” different career paths while also meeting the people and organizations behind them.


What began as a collaborative effort—supported by partners including local schools, SFA, workforce and economic development organizations, and community foundations—grew into a strong, community-owned initiative.
Today, the program continues under the leadership of Workforce Solutions of Deep East Texas in partnership with Stephen F. Austin State University, Nacogdoches ISD, and other local partners.


Better Together is proud to have played a role in launching and helping to shape this effort in its early years, and we are grateful to see it continue as a sustainable, community-led opportunity for students across the region.
Buddy Benches
The purpose of a Buddy Bench is to encourage friendship-building and inclusion. When a child is feeling lonely or would like to connect with others, they can go sit on the bench, serving as a cue to peers to invite them for play.


Better Together board member Tracie Estepp heard about this idea and developed a proposal for Better Together to fund the construction of benches for the Nacogdoches County Schools.
Participating districts received copies of the book called “The Buddy Bench” which was read to younger students.

Better Together also covered the cost of supplies for the construction of a bench, to be designed and built by older students.
Woden ISD has a completed bench for both their elementary and preschool playgrounds. We were so excited to see the enthusiasm behind this project as it brought together students and staff from this vibrant community!
I am From Poems
This community writing project was initiated in 2020 with a partnership between Better Together and the Community Arts Center of East Texas. It was developed out of a desire to help people stay connected during the COVID-19 shutdown.


Participants first answered a questionnaire similar to a mad libs story maker. This information was used to generate a poem. Participants could opt to post their poem to the online gallery.


Since its inception the I Am From poems have been used in a number of situations: as a classroom exercise to explore differences in personal experience, a gift for volunteers at a local agency, and even in a eulogy!
COVID-19 Support
During the pandemic, Better Together partnered with the City of Nacogdoches, County of Nacogdoches, and the Nacogdoches Chamber of Commerce to focus on disseminating information about COVID-19 precautions, practices, and vaccines at a time when easy access to reliable information was critical.
Broadband Initiative
During the COVID-19 pandemic when schools switched to online learning, it became apparent that a lack of access to broadband internet was a serious problem. Better Together partnered with several community agencies and the Hogg Foundation to bring the Connect Nations survey to Nacogdoches County. This was the beginning of our community’s journey to bringing broadband to the county. Since then a regional committee has been formed to address the issue.
Give 5
Better Together has partnered with Nacogdoches Area United Way to support the implementation of Give 5, a national program that promotes volunteerism, focusing primarily on older adults. Through this program, individuals interested in engaging as volunteers receive a thorough orientation to local nonprofits and the variety of volunteer opportunities at each agency, and then they are empowered to regularly volunteer at local agencies. Give 5 was created to address five macro-trends that are impacting every community: a wave of talent on the move – 10,000 baby boomers are turning 65 every day for 19 years; social isolation is a large and growing health issue – the largest health risk for seniors; a growing need to strengthen community fabric – the power of a shared experience and meeting people outside of your bubble; an increased importance of volunteerism – nonprofits are in need of additional skills and talents in this hyper-competitive labor market; and the largest transfer of wealth in history is underway. Give 5 is a way for retirees and seniors to apply their talents and passions directly to a community’s primary areas of need. The “civic matchmaking” program provides the journey to find the best individual fit between program participant and nonprofit volunteer opportunity.